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3.48 AVERAGE
3.48 AVERAGE
I liked this comic aesthetically and would love to see this as the giant composite of its original creation. However, I had a hard time following just exactly what was going on, and I'm also unsure what makes this a specific nod to manga and not just a general comic.
*****
Counting this as my indie publisher for the Panels Read Harder challenge.
*****
Counting this as my indie publisher for the Panels Read Harder challenge.
I liked this comic aesthetically and would love to see this as the giant composite of its original creation. However, I had a hard time following just exactly what was going on, and I'm also unsure what makes this a specific nod to manga and not just a general comic.
*****
Counting this as my indie publisher for the Panels Read Harder challenge.
*****
Counting this as my indie publisher for the Panels Read Harder challenge.
What a beautiful find on the shelves of the public library! I wish I could rip out the pages as suggested in the author's note to put all the pages together.
This manga translates cultural art and story into something closer to a modern day comic. The color palette is amazing and my favorite thing about the art. To me, the story felt like it stopped as it was getting excellent and I would have liked a little more, but I think that it's likely on my end with me missing a lot of the depth. I hope to read more of this sort of thing so I can build my capacity and experience this from a more developed place.
I am not going to rate this one because I can tell I'm not qualified.
I am not going to rate this one because I can tell I'm not qualified.
While a lot of aspect of this story flew way over my head, I still found it to be a really exciting read - both on an artistic and narrative level.
A bit of a slower read physically, I constantly found myself having to "read the pictures" which I guess I can sometimes gloss over as I whip through graphic novels at the speed of light. While it did feel a bit arduous at times, I blame my inpatients and not Yahgulanaas. The art is beautiful, drawing from tradition but also infused with many personal elements as well. Using such expressive lines to break up the frames is not something I'm used to and really made the work feel energetic and unique.
I'm not only excited to read more of Yahgulanaas' art, but actually to return to this book again when I've gained a bit more patience and understanding.
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Reading this book again I have come to appreciate much more this time around. This is not only due to the fact that thanks to light medication I am a much more patient person, but also because I have been reading a book about Yahgulanaas himself that has helped me better understand what he is trying to do with his work.
A bit of a slower read physically, I constantly found myself having to "read the pictures" which I guess I can sometimes gloss over as I whip through graphic novels at the speed of light. While it did feel a bit arduous at times, I blame my inpatients and not Yahgulanaas. The art is beautiful, drawing from tradition but also infused with many personal elements as well. Using such expressive lines to break up the frames is not something I'm used to and really made the work feel energetic and unique.
I'm not only excited to read more of Yahgulanaas' art, but actually to return to this book again when I've gained a bit more patience and understanding.
---
Reading this book again I have come to appreciate much more this time around. This is not only due to the fact that thanks to light medication I am a much more patient person, but also because I have been reading a book about Yahgulanaas himself that has helped me better understand what he is trying to do with his work.
Red is artistically really interesting - I love how the panels are shaped according to common forms of Haida art, and the fact that the end of the book includes a composite image showing how all the pages' panel structure is interrelated was a nice and fascinating touch. The story contained some humour and some pathos that felt fairly well communicated by the art, and I thought there were some very clever and striking uses of layout and design and visual metaphor to communicate what was happening.
There were also a few parts of the story where things became unclear to me. I'm not sure if that betrays my unfamiliarity with the storytelling traditions Yahgulanaas is invoking or is a comment on the art, but it did occasionally cause me to slow down in confusion; sometimes this was rewarded by understanding something more visually complex, but other times the complexity didn't seem to serve a purpose. I also felt like the pacing of the story was slightly rushed, though I can imagine that with the time and effort it takes to create all this art, the story structure needs to be a bit more malleable.
That said, this is a really interesting work, one well worth reading and one I'm glad I found. I think I'll look into more of Yahgulanaas' work!
There were also a few parts of the story where things became unclear to me. I'm not sure if that betrays my unfamiliarity with the storytelling traditions Yahgulanaas is invoking or is a comment on the art, but it did occasionally cause me to slow down in confusion; sometimes this was rewarded by understanding something more visually complex, but other times the complexity didn't seem to serve a purpose. I also felt like the pacing of the story was slightly rushed, though I can imagine that with the time and effort it takes to create all this art, the story structure needs to be a bit more malleable.
That said, this is a really interesting work, one well worth reading and one I'm glad I found. I think I'll look into more of Yahgulanaas' work!
This was a beautiful graphic novel that made me pause many times just to soak in the designs. I’ve never seen these kinds of designs before, which flow and curve and reinvent comic panelling. I love how the images can be moved around to create new stories, which I think is also the intention of the writer. The story begins with, “Once upon a time this was a true story …” It was true and is no longer true. Perhaps the fact that we can use the pages to create a new story is to also say that we can break the cycle of violence. That right now, you can change the world.
I also love the line, “Ever since we got scared, everyone else’s gotten scared of us.” It feels awfully relevant these days, especially in the context of the story.
There is something really tragic about Red because there is so much about him to empathize with. He suffered in a way no one else in his village has, but the problem was that he didn’t want restorative justice. And while he was not restorative in his actions, I’m not sure the ending was either. This story is kind of a parable or a morality tale, but I wish it gave a better description of what to do, rather than what not to do.
I also worry that blaming the traders at the end is also wrong. They warned Red about his sister and her feelings, and while I don’t want to say they are blameless, to focus on them is to ignore the pain which Red himself felt and needed to articulate.
Love the book, highly recommend.
I also love the line, “Ever since we got scared, everyone else’s gotten scared of us.” It feels awfully relevant these days, especially in the context of the story.
There is something really tragic about Red because there is so much about him to empathize with. He suffered in a way no one else in his village has, but the problem was that he didn’t want restorative justice. And while he was not restorative in his actions, I’m not sure the ending was either. This story is kind of a parable or a morality tale, but I wish it gave a better description of what to do, rather than what not to do.
I also worry that blaming the traders at the end is also wrong. They warned Red about his sister and her feelings, and while I don’t want to say they are blameless, to focus on them is to ignore the pain which Red himself felt and needed to articulate.
Love the book, highly recommend.